


Butterfly Effect

by Corinne_Nohrule



Series: The Archipelago’s Mythos [4]
Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Fluff, Hubert will use his powers here and there, Hubert’s using the secret admirer route to express his love, I swear it gets cute later on :3, Letters, Lysithea’s gonna be his fellow sorceress wingman, M/M, Meanwhile Hubert’s butterflies are literal wingmen XD, Modern AU, Philippine Mythology/Folklore AU, Somehow
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-09
Updated: 2020-10-11
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:08:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,019
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26906380
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Corinne_Nohrule/pseuds/Corinne_Nohrule
Summary: Hubert, ever since taking a shine to the foreign student that is Ferdinand Aegir, wishes to make his interest known to the other. Therefore, he does it in the only way that he knows how.
Relationships: Ferdinand von Aegir/Hubert von Vestra
Series: The Archipelago’s Mythos [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1908481
Comments: 6
Kudos: 17





	1. The First Message

**Author's Note:**

> So, here’s another entry to the series, where it’s mostly about Hubert trying to woo Ferdinand, albeit from a distance. Why? Well, he’s not used to communicating face to face, not especially when it comes to the matters of the heart. :’)  
> (And considering his status as a Mambabarang, this meant that he had to hide a lot.)
> 
> Anyways, enjoy this first chapter to the new addition!

In the long life that he’s ever lived, Hubert Vestra could never imagine finding a single person he would eventually befriend, let alone like so intensely.

It simply didn’t cross his mind at the beginning, with how much he spent most of his long life killing and eliminating targets at the expense of the clientele which began over a century prior. With the many casualties under his belt, he just didn’t give himself time for other priorities, such as love, or even matrimony.

The ones who were considered suitable ladies for him to potentially court, at least by the fellow elite of Capiz at the time, were the daughters of Señor Gonzales and Señor Varle.  
Now, Hubert had rejected both families’ prospective candidates for marriage. Firstly, the daughter of Señor Gonzales was a haughty lady who made no point in hiding her blatant desire for getting richer by marriage. Hubert was so off-put by her attitude that he practically threatened Señor Gonzales with death if he didn’t stop pushing her forward as a candidate.

As for the daughter of Señor Varle, Bernadetta, she struggled to connect with others, and even more so because of her father’s past abuse. Furthermore, at the time, she needed a friend rather than a husband, so Hubert (reluctantly) fulfilled that role until she did eventually find someone she loved. Then, much to Hubert’s surprise, the husband adopted her surname rather than the other way around. (Which probably helped; Hubert had no difficulty tracking down her descendants, the current one also named Bernadetta.)

———————————-

Now, the period of the Spanish, American and Japanese colonialists have come and gone, and it was a miracle Hubert survived those times, even moreso due to his heritage as a Mambabarang. Which, in his personal opinion, made him a bigger target from the deep Catholic-ness the people had. He had since let his guard down a bit from not having people to eliminate, and frankly, it opened some new doors for him to navigate.

Namely, the fact that a person named Ferdinand has touched him in so many ways. 

The guy, orange locks framing his face and all, was pretty much Hubert’s opposite, both in appearance and personality. Ferdinand preferred dressing up in bright colors, Hubert had a taste for cooler and darker colors. Hubert wasn’t a people person; Ferdinand was. Ferdinand was a spirited youth, Hubert a cautious one.

And so on and so forth.

Yet, as cliche as it was, Hubert got smitten with his opposite. He had no clue to know what did it; whether it was his literally radiant appearance, his tendency to drop everything to help anyone, or that last part plus doing it with a smile, Hubert was sure—-Ferdinand caused a butterfly effect of sorts for him, as ironic as it was with the nature of his powers and all.

As a matter of fact, the very first time they interacted was when Hubert, meticulous guy he was, forgot his pen for a class one day. Ferdinand, who happened to be around, lent him one without expecting something big in return. The memory was fresh in the sorcerer’s mind:

_ “I can’t believe this...” Hubert muttered, digging into his bag a little bit more until he paused, rolled his eyes, and hit his hand against his bag in an embarrassing kind of defeat. “Why today, of all days, did I forget my pen?” _

_ “Excuse me?” A voice called out near him.  _

_ Hubert looked up, getting face to face with a teen with red hair, almost orange in shade, with matching eyes. He appeared curious as to what was up with Hubert. _

_ “Yes?” Hubert groaned, a bit too dramatic, but to him, losing a pen was an obstacle to his education.  _

_ “I was thinking you might need this.” Then the redhead handed over a ballpen, ornate with its appearance, monarch butterflies decorating the whole of it. “I have another one anyways.” _

_ Hubert accepted the pen with some reluctance, and oddly enough, a bit of heartfelt gratitude. “...Thank you.” _

_ “No problem!” The mystery teen got and went on his way, but he turned his back one more time. His lips formed a sweet smile. “Oh, and I am Ferdinand Aegir! Hope I run into you again!” _

—————————————-

That same ballpen remained in Hubert’s hand, him twirling it occasionally as he looked down on the small piece of paper resting at his table. It was about time he acted on these lingering feelings that rested in his heart, and as straightforward as it seemed to do so, in terms of what he actually wanted to say, well...

He was clueless on how to proceed with it.

One of the butterflies that stayed with him in his room fluttered by on his shoulder. Hubert noticed the little one resting on him, and reached out a hand for the butterfly to perch on. His eyes turned fond when he looked at the little black butterfly.

“You noticed me thinking too hard, haven’t you Remedios?” 

The butterfly didn’t respond verbally, but Hubert imagined that little Remedios was staring at him in a flat sort of manner. 

“Of course, I can’t really make much progress if I waste my time speaking to you.” Hubert commented, then after outstretching his hand to let Remedios fly free, he reached a eureka moment. He had an idea now on what to put on his paper. Taking a moment to write it down, with cursive and thought, Hubert put down his pen and held it up to read the result.

“Ferdinand...I only hope this would make you smile.”

—————————————

The next day, Ferdinand was brisk walking his way to the premises of Far Eastern, backpack at his person and his hair flowing by from the rush of getting there fast. He expected nothing to get at his way for today’s classes; after all, Ferdinand wasn’t going to risk missing one. Not when his father gave him a big scolding for doing so yesterday.

As he was on his way, a fluttering shape got his attention. Ferdinand stopped in his tracks, trying to look closer at the small figure. Said small shape happened to be a butterfly, or to be more specific, a monarch butterfly, and it appeared to be holding a small sheet of paper. Upon closer inspection, it had the name “Ferdinand” inscribed with refined cursive.

“What’s this...” Ferdinand plucked the paper from the little butterfly, and what he read behind in his inscribed name made him gasp.

_ ‘I hope you keep finding reasons to smile...yours is so radiant whenever I look at it. _

_ -Alibangbang’ _

Now, Ferdinand had a lot of thoughts running in his head: First, who was this person who gave him this note? Second, this mystery person knew about his tendency to grin. Thirdly, who was this person that was so refined that they even had a delivery service that used a butterfly? 

But looking at the note again, Ferdinand couldn’t help but feel elated from the encouraging words. The scolding from his father nearly crushed his spirits yesterday, and the effects lingered on through this morning. He didn’t know if this mystery messenger knew about it, but he was glad to have received such encouragement.

Especially when he really needed it at the moment.

“I don’t know who you are, but...” Ferdinand brought the note close to his chest. “Thank you for the sweet words.” The redhead’s lips curled up, his eyes turning tender. 

He didn’t know whether he will be given more, but until then, Ferdinand chose to hold on to the piece of paper, keeping those words close to his heart.

Ferdinand proceeded to get to his class, still hanging on to the note that made his day a little brighter.

————————————-

Just out of Ferdinand’s sight, there lingered Hubert, hiding behind and under the shadow of the Narra tree. He fought the urge to blush just as Ferdinand clutched the note close to his heart. From the way the other teen looked, Hubert could tell that he was successful in conveying how he felt. Ah, it was like in the old times, back when he was still in the Katipunan, exchanging secret notes and codes...

Except this time, his mission was more personal, much closer to his feelings.

The monarch butterfly fluttered back to Hubert, to which the ravenette gazed at, smitten from its color that reminded him of his target of affections. 

That was it then; Hubert was going to keep sending them.


	2. That Lingering Feeling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The next notes are given to Ferdinand during a difficult time, specifically before and after his midterm tests. He finds further solace in them, while at the same time, wonders about the ever elusive student that is Hubert.
> 
> Meanwhile, Hubert manages to exchange a few personal words with his person of affections.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here’s the second chapter, and I gotta say...I tried very hard to make the romance happen. :’D  
> Apologies if this one took over a day or two to complete, since I really wanted to make the ferdibert interactions work.
> 
> Anyways, enjoy this new addition!

A few days after the first note, Ferdinand was expectant for the next one to come by. When that didn’t happen, he made a move to distract himself by getting buried in his studies, something that was rare for him to do.

He sat at one of the cafeteria tables in Far Eastern, flipping page after page from one of his subject’s modules. At this rate, he couldn’t afford to distract himself with something so trivial as a simple note from a few days ago.

Or at least, that was what he was trying to tell himself.

That mystery writer loved to see him smile, which was something they expressed in the first note ever written to him. While he was touched, Ferdinand remained curious as to who would notice something as simple as that. Best case scenario, it was someone whom he was familiar with who took a liking to and had a crush on him. As for worst case, someone who wanted to bully him into thinking the delusional idea that anyone would want him.

Ferdinand prayed that it was the best case.

In the meantime, Ferdinand remained at his spot, reading his notes from one of his classes. A rare frown rested on his face, though it was out of taking his lessons seriously for once.

——————————-

“You got it really bad, don’t you?” Lysithea commented, eating up her ensaymada while reading her book. Across from her, Hubert was eating his own cafeteria meal, only that was secondary to what he was primarily focused on.

Namely, Hubert was staring, longingly, at the strawberry blonde boy that was a few tables away from where the two were.

“Hush, Lysithea, it’s nothing sentimental.” Hubert replied, obviously lying from the hint of red that managed to show on the corners of his ears. The silverette raised a brow from that. 

“You sure? Because you don’t seem too keen on eating your meal.” Lysithea pointed her fork at the unfinished plate in front of the raven-haired student. With that, Hubert glared and poked his fork on a bit of the food, and took a big bite out of spite.

The girl sighed. “Look, Hubert, you can’t just beat around the bush with love notes—just tell him.”

“For the record, I only wrote one note to Ferdinand, since I have no clue on what to send him next.” Hubert began, taking another bite just as he returned to gazing at the other teen, still engrossed in his notes. “Secondly, I can’t risk saying it right away; Ferdinand, from what I can see, is just as stressed as anyone else from Midterms—I can’t give him another reason to be distressed.”

“Right...” Lysithea rolled her eyes, then smirked. “Though, I must say, how can you tell that Ferdinand’s reading for midterms? When the normal cramming period is hours before the actual test?” She took another bite from her ensaymada bun. “Also, I never saw you being so, well, observant before with anyone else. Not since your old job.”

Hubert struggled to give a straight answer. “I—well, they’re a week away from now, and he just happened to read at this time, so that’s how I came up with the conclusion.” Even he was being so observant with what Ferdinand was doing—-Lysithea was right, Hubert had it bad.

“Anyways...” Lysithea spoke up again. “As much as I want to ease your tribulations of having a crush by making you a love potion, I can’t do that since this is something I know that you can and must handle yourself.” 

Hubert sighed. “I wasn’t going to ask for a love potion, but thanks for the vote of confidence.” His eyes trailed back to Ferdinand, who already appeared despondent while scanning his readings. 

—————————-

Meanwhile, Ferdinand’s mood wasn’t getting any better; the topics and important notes were too much for him to keep track. He wondered why he didn’t simply procrastinate until next week. Until he remembered that of course, the mystery letter writer occupied his thoughts for a few days, and that this studying was more of a distraction rather than dedication as a student. 

Speaking of which, the tiny sound of wings flapping had Ferdinand to turn his back and, much to his surprise and inner joy, the monarch butterfly came back, and with a new letter with same inscribed address. This time, it read the following:

_ ‘How have you been today? Apologies if this one took a while. I hope you’re doing fine? _

_ -Alibangbang’ _

Ferdinand almost died right then and there. His mystery writer had returned, and from the words written, they were also concerned about him too. The redhead cracked a grin on his features; he was waiting for the mystery writer to come back, and frankly, he went restless during those few days without a single note.

Now it came and Ferdinand wasn’t going to let go of this, ever.

Just as his eyes were shining from rereading the script, a yell from nearby got him to perk his head up. Only, he was facing a flying tray of food that was headed straight for his desk. Ferdinand barely had any time to react and the food was zooming fast towards him.

Then a shadow appeared right by his side, and then he heard the sound of something metal colliding. Ferdinand, upon recovering from that initial shock by the flying tray, saw that it was a fellow student, wearing all dark, standing beside him, arm outstretched. The arm had some bits and pieces of lunch scattered all over, staining the black sleeve.

Ferdinand breathed a sigh of relief. “Oh, Hubert! Thanks for saving me back there.”

Hubert shook his arm, letting the food scatter to the floor, uncaring. “No problem.” He looked at the massive amounts of paper on the redhead’s desk. “Well, I didn’t take you for the studious type, Ferdinand.” His voice teased.

“Oh, please, Hubert—you don’t see me alone that much, and yet I can tell you with confidence that I do study often.” Ferdinand jabbed, poking Hubert by his other arm. 

“Really? Coming from someone who ‘hated studying long hours’?” Hubert retorted back, smirk forming on his face. Damn, Hubert had cornered him, and with something Ferdinand thought the other had overlooked. 

“You got me.” Ferdinand gave a laugh. “Anyways, how have you been?” He rested his head against his hand, atop his papers on the table. “I hope University hasn’t sucked the life out of you yet.”

“As much as it tries to, Ferdinand, I’ve lived long enough to know that it doesn’t, and it won’t ever be the case.” Hubert quipped, dusting off the last of the food bits that remained on his sleeve. 

Ferdinand raised a brow at that claim, but otherwise smiled when Hubert went to face him again. It wasn’t often that he and the ravenette shared a moment to converse with each other, with University becoming even busier for the both of them in the incoming days. Though with every words they exchanged, Ferdinand felt more familiar and connected with Hubert, despite his tendency to act secretive. He was glad that the latter was becoming more open with him, and it showed.

The bell rang, and Ferdinand immediately made his move to pack up his readings and notebooks, including the sent note. 

“I guess it’s goodbye for now! Uhm, salamat, by the way!” Then Ferdinand rushed out of the cafeteria doors, and with most of the students gone, it only left Hubert and his monarch butterfly companion. Said butterfly flew down to Hubert’s outstretched finger, landing on it while its master gazed at it, eyes becoming fond.

“Did you see him, Fernando? I’m certain that I’ll bring myself to madness with Ferdinand’s attempt at Tagalog like that.” Hubert addressed his butterfly, chuckling as he recalled that particular inflection Ferdinand had used in saying the word. “Just a bit more, and maybe he’ll say yes and choose me...”

“Hey! Are you done yet?” Lysithea’s head popped from behind the cafeteria door. “Can’t afford to be late for class now!”

With that, Hubert whispered quick instructions to his monarch butterfly and then left to proceed with his next classes.

————————

TWO WEEKS LATER...

Ferdinand had never felt so despondent in his life.

He took the Midterms, and before that, he reviewed so hard for all of his subjects. Ferdinand was certain that he hit the mark when he was done with them, and he waited in confidence for the hopes of high marks.

Imagine his disappointment and utter devastation when he came to know of the results: 

Ferdinand failed two out of five written tests he had for the Midterms week. Now while that didn’t sound like a big deal, to him, and especially his father, it was. 

And now, Ferdinand sat on a bench, close to tears from the crushing feeling of failure. A few drops of water landing on his head made him notice that rainfall was coming too. 

So much for weather that fit the mood of feeling blue.

When the rainfall became faster in its drips and drops, only then did something shield Ferdinand from the falling drops. He looked up to see a umbrella, and none other than Hubert was holding its handle, leaning forward to protect Ferdinand from the rainfall. 

“I thought that you brought your own umbrella for this incoming rain...” Hubert trailed off when Ferdinand remained unresponsive and silent. He moved to sit down next to the redhead. “Is something the matter?”

Ferdinand’s voice remained hushed. “...failed it....”

“Hmm? What did you say? I didn’t catch that.”

“I failed in two of my tests!” Ferdinand shouted, then realized what he had done before burying his hands in utter shame for being unrestrained in front of Hubert. “I let myself down! And I reviewed so hard for the Midterms period...I can’t believe I was careless to let mistakes happen.”

“Ferdinand, don’t be ridiculous.” Hubert spoke out, startled by Ferdinand’s change in demeanor. “Why do you beat yourself up so badly for simple answers you got wrong in the test?”

“Well, that’s the thing! I got wrong answers, and now my father will never let me hear the end of it...” Ferdinand groaned miserably in his hands. He never thought he’d see the day where he would be in a low point in his school life, and now he was so distraught that even talking with Hubert wasn’t enough to brighten his spirits.

“Ferdinand...” Hubert placed a gentle hand onto the other’s shoulder. “Will you be alright?”

The redhead gave a sniff, wiping his eyes. “...I’ll be alright. Just need to get back to my dorm, and have some time for myself.” He rose up and put on his bright orange hoodie, taking his cue to leave.

“Ferdinand!”

“Yeah?” The redhead turned his back.

“...Be careful out there, okay?”

A small smile formed on Ferdinand’s lips for the first time that day. “I will.”

While Hubert looked on at Ferdinand’s retreating figure, he opened up his hand, instantly summoning his monarch butterfly with the sparks of his magic.

“I need you to send this note I’m about to write, immediately.”

———————————

Ferdinand remained steadfast in his walking, alone and miserable on the sidewalk that led to his dorm. From the loneliness he felt at the moment, he wished that he did bring Hubert along with him. 

Then, the tell-tale sound of fluttering wings had returned, them being loud enough to be heard in the rainfall. Having a clue by now as to what made that sound, Ferdinand came face to face again with the little monarch butterfly, holding a new note with the same address. It had been two weeks since the last one, and Ferdinand had learned to be more patient with them. He got ahold of it, and what he read made his heart stop in the best way.

’ _It doesn’t matter if you’ve failed in a test or two—I’ve already given you a perfect score, for you are great the way you are; your smiles, determination, everything._

_-Alibangbang’_

As cheesy as it sounded, Ferdinand was filled with joy from the sincerity that the note gave out. It made his previous woes seem obsolete; this mystery writer saw past that and managed to let out Ferdinand’s strengths. He swooned from just how much they knew what Ferdinand needed most. 

But then, looking at the note once more, Ferdinand remembered something: he never told anyone else that he had failed two tests. The only person he ever mentioned this to was Hubert.

Which meant...

Though before Ferdinand can properly conclude such in his mind, he caught sight of shadows gliding above and at his sides. Ferdinand scanned his surroundings; there was no one with him in the sidewalk, with the occasional car passing by, which didn’t help his situation much. A ‘swoosh’ was heard again from behind, and there Ferdinand caught sight of a pair of claws encroaching from the dark. This wasn’t good, not one bit.

Ferdinand turned to the butterfly still flying by his side. “Go fly away safely, little butterfly...I don’t want you hurt because of those...” The shadowy claws grew ever bigger, making Ferdinand a bit shaken on his feet. “...claws. Now please, go!”

As if it listened to his plea, the monarch butterfly flew away, notably fast for a creature like itself. But this meant Ferdinand was left alone to face the incoming danger, which revealed itself as a grotesque, shadowy being with the ever visible claws present on its human like hands and feet. Ferdinand ventilated, yet made a valiant effort to hold his ground. 

The being let out a gravelly cackle, its red eyes staring intensely at Ferdinand. **“Prey...and this one fell right into my trap.”** It stepped closer, which made Ferdinand step back. **“I will enjoy this meal for tonight...young flesh!”**

Then it leapt upward, and it descended rapidly right before Ferdinand’s figure. Ferdinand was unable to act fast enough, leaving him to face his doom at the hands of this creature...

When suddenly, a blast of energy knocked the being back, far away from the redhead. Ferdinand blinked at what he just saw; who saved him at the nick of time?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Plot twist, there is danger!
> 
> In all seriousness, I wanted to show Mambabarang!Hubert in action, and I thought, why not be a knight in dark robes and save Ferdinand in the next chapter?
> 
> (P.S. Hubert named his monarch butterfly, of all things, Fernando, after the name of his crush. God, he’s got it bad. XD)


	3. A Savior’s Reward

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ferdinand comes face to face with the mysterious savior who saved him from the grotesque aswang, and also confirms who his mystery writer is.
> 
> Hubert gets the chance to use his powers offensively, and while it’s been a long while since he’s used them, he’s ultimately rewarded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s the final part; even if it’s a shorter fic compared to its sister story, The Prince of Many Colors, I hope it’s enough to give you the urge to say “Awww”. :3
> 
> Enjoy this new addition!

Once the initial shock had worn off, Ferdinand’s eyes scanned everywhere for the source of that blast. Just as the creature attempted to stand up again, the dark violet aura came hurling back at it, throwing it down once more. Ferdinand heard footsteps, and when he pivoted behind him, he came face to face with none other than Hubert, whom he noticed was enveloped with energy.

Hubert, courtesy of his monarch butterfly, had sensed that Ferdinand got himself into danger, and therefore rushed to save the other, thankfully not too late to do so. Apparently a rogue aswang, the shapeshifting-to-werebeast-kind, had taken an interest in the redhead as its next meal. Frankly, Hubert not wanting Ferdinand to become prey to this beast was an understatement.

As he looked on at the current scene before him, Hubert’s eyes met Ferdinand’s. Despite his light green eyes glowing violet from his powers, they were gentle enough to let Ferdinand know that he was only meaning to protect him. 

“Hubert...” Ferdinand began. “You’re...”

“Later.” Hubert raised his hands, gathering energy in them. “Just stay back; I’ll handle this.” Then he turned back to the creature, who was slowly getting back up from the ground, snarling at its new foe. 

Hubert wasn’t going to take any nonsense from this being whatsoever, waving his arms back like had an imaginary long coat behind him. 

The creature’s eyes widened when they realized just who they were facing against. **“You...aren’t you...the Butterfly of Death?!”**

“I don’t call myself that, but I’m touched that some are even aware of my reputation in the modern day.” 

Then Hubert, with a wave of his hands, summoned threads of white trailing on his fingers. At first, Ferdinand had no clue what Hubert was about to do with them, until the latter flicked the strings like whips, and ensnared the aswang’s arms. 

Then the string slowly turned red as Hubert unleashed one of his spells. Said spell involved beetles suddenly crawling all over the aswang, incapacitating it as it tried to swat them off. While the monster was distracted trying to fling off the pesky beetles, it didn’t notice Hubert summoning a moth that led itself into the aswang’s body through the string entering its ear.

Hubert gave a wicked smirk, one that he hadn’t used in a while since the old days. 

“My, my...it would be very bad if an insect already entered your system, now, right?”

With that, the Aswang’s eyes widened by the realization, and attempted to lunge at Hubert in retaliation. “Why, you—-!”

“Now, my little ones...” 

Hubert then waved his hands again, this time clenching his fist as a finishing gesture for his magic. Next thing Ferdinand knew, the aswang abruptly exploded from the sudden influx of moths flying out from all over. 

Beetles also exited from the creature’s chest, giving it no chance to revive itself from that move.

It was accompanied by a resounding magic blast, and the light coming from it further illuminated Hubert’s face. Frankly, being able to eliminate someone, while at the same time protecting Ferdinand gave him a sense of...something new, one that seemed to be indescribable by his own mind. Whatever it was, Hubert concluded to himself that he liked it.

Meanwhile, Ferdinand saw the victorious smirk Hubert had on his person, and his cheeks turned a fair red. He didn’t know why, but what he did know was that the ravenette looked positively radiant with the magic’s light against him. Added to that was Hubert being the one who saved him to begin with, well...

——————————

Once the magic died down, the remains of the aswang laid crumpled on the sidewalk, rendered itself dead. To ensure that it wouldn’t come back, Hubert took out a small pouch from his pocket, and sprinkled some salt on its corpse. The aswang’s flesh hissed from the silver grains; a testament to how truly demonic this being was.

“That aswang won’t be able to bother you anymore...” Hubert turned to look at Ferdinand. “You alright?”

Ferdinand had taken his time to fully gather his thoughts on what he just witnessed. On the other hand, he uttered out, “I’m fine, but...what was that back there? I’ve never seen something like that until just now.”

Hubert sighed. He supposed that it was about time Ferdinand knew the truth. 

“That was an aswang...one of the creatures of the night that target humans for their flesh.” Hubert explained. “And I...well,” His eyes trailed downward, to his palms, where Fernando and Remedios were summoned, resting on them. “I’m a sorcerer.”

“One that controls insects?”

“...Yes. I’m what’s known as a Mambabarang.” Hubert continued. “I’m the only one left from my clan; there are other Mambabarang clans out there, but I’m the last from the Vestra line.”

“Oh...” Ferdinand nodded; while he had plenty of other questions, he chose not to raise them when he saw the monarch butterfly on Hubert’s palm. Which reminded him. “Then you must be the one who sent me all of those letters?”

“I...I did, yes.” Red became the color of Hubert’s cheeks in an instant. Eyes gazed to the side, for once unsure of the outcome. “If you don’t reciprocate, it’s fine, but...just know that ever since you gave me a pen to borrow, it led me to plenty of things. But most of all...” Hubert exhaled with a gentle smile. “It led me to you.”

Ferdinand’s face became stuck in catatonia, speechless as his face slowly turned red again. He was surprised that Hubert managed to remember their first meeting. It gave him a hint that the other was definitely serious about his feelings. 

Ferdinand could’ve gone on thinking about it, when he saw Hubert still standing there, gazing at him this time, expectant. Coming from the high that was getting his life at risk, and with Hubert saving his life among other good things he did, might as well give him a response.

Hubert feared the worst when Ferdinand didn’t give a verbal reply, hence he was ready to step away just as the most unexpected thing happened:

He felt a small peck on his cheek.

Huh?

Looking to see the source, Hubert’s eyes met with Ferdinand close to him, eyes closed, bestowing him with a kiss on the cheek. Ferdinand was even grasping Hubert’s hand, clearly intent on giving this to him. A second more, and Ferdinand pulled away, nearly blushing by the end of it. 

“There. That’s my answer.”

“Is that a yes?”

Ferdinand resisted a laugh from that, smiling. “Didn’t you get it the first time? It is! And since you took the extra mile to protect me, well...I could consider a date.”

“...Make it two.”

“Deal.” A peck on the cheek again.

——————————

Lysithea walked by the sidewalk, reading her newest spellbook to get a head start to train her magic, when she saw Hubert and Ferdinand in close proximity to each other, blissfully smiling. Hubert’s two butterflies, Fernando and Remedios even flew around them in the shape of a heart. 

As if the outcome of their conversation needed to be ever so blatant, Lysithea mused.

She cupped a hand around her mouth. “Finally, you two!”

Both Hubert and Ferdinand jumped from her call, both trying to collect themselves.

Lysithea laughed, resuming her walk. “Ah, romance...”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Additional Notes:
> 
> Aswang: An umbrella term for a shapeshifting being of the night. There are actually many different kinds of aswang, the most common ones being the bloodsuckers, ghouls, werebeasts, viscera suckers and witches. In this case, it was the werebeast kind that tried to attack Ferdinand.
> 
> Hubert’s String Magic: According to folklore, one of the ways they let their insect minions infiltrate their target’s body is to tie one of them to a white string and let them go to the victim. The infiltration is successful if the thread turns red. 
> 
> Anyways, guys, that’s the end of Butterfly Effect, but expect some more for the Archipelago’s Mythos series. Thanks for reading along!
> 
> P.S. Fernando (the monarch butterfly) and Remedios (the black butterfly) are, and will always be, two of Hubert’s many insect children. XD

**Author's Note:**

> Additional Note:  
> Alibangbang: means ‘butterfly’ in Hiligaynon. (This doubles as one of his two code names back in his days as a spy for the Katipunan; the other one was gamugamo, meaning ‘moth’ in Tagalog.)
> 
> So, yep, that’s the end for this first chapter; hopefully I can think of more love letters for Hubert to write for his Ferdinand.
> 
> Also, yep, Hubert has named his butterflies and moths (they’re his only constant companions, imbued by his magic no less).
> 
> Feel free to give feedback! :)


End file.
